ESI Group

Board/Management Information • Jan 27, 2009

ESI Group NewCap. Shareholder relations Tel.: +33 (0)1 44 71 94 94 Tel.: +33 (0)1 53 65 14 14 infos@newcap.fr investors@esi-group.com

Corinne Romefort-Régnier Emmanuel Huynh / Axelle Vuillermet

Strengthening of the Board of Directors

Appointment of Eric d'Hotelans

Paris, 27th January 2009: ESI Group (ISIN FR0004110310), a pioneer and world-leading solution provider in virtual prototyping and manufacturing processes, announced today the strengthening of its Board of Directors, with the appointment of Eric d'Hotelans as an independent director.

A graduate in economic sciences, Eric d'Hotelans began his career with Olivetti, spent nine years with Matra Informatique and ten with Tandem, where he was the director of the Emea Finance Business Unit. In 1998, he decided to join CMG, one of the oldest European IT Services companies, as a member of the executive committee, where he created CMG France, the group's French subsidiary, of which he became the chairman. Eric d'Hotelans left the CMG group in 2003, following its acquisition by UK group Logica. He then participated in the development of an investment fund based in Riyadh (Saudi Arabia), specialising in the research and analysis of ITrelated activities.

Since November 2003, Eric d'Hotelans has been Deputy Chairman of M6 group's board of Directors, in charge of management.

The appointment of Eric d'Hotelans as an independent director on the ESI Group's Board is subject to shareholder approval at the Annual General Meeting of 25th June 2009.

Alain de Rouvray, ESI Group's Chairman and CEO, concludes: "We are very pleased and proud that Eric d'Hotelans has chosen to join our Board. His expertise, which is based on both his knowledge of IT business lines and his experience in management and administrative support activities, will be a valuable asset for us in pursuing our development. This appointment fulfils our desire to strengthen our good governance practices and to cover, thanks to the expertise of our directors, the main management fields of an international company. ESI Group's Board now has five independent directors who are perfectly qualified to help our management team profit from their vast experience."

About ESI Group

ESI Group is a world-leading supplier and pioneer of digital simulation software for prototyping and manufacturing processes that take into account the physics of materials. ESI Group has developed an extensive suite of coherent, industry-oriented applications to realistically simulate a product's behavior during testing, to fine-tune manufacturing processes in accordance with desired product performance, and to evaluate the environment's impact on product performance. ESI Group's products represent a unique collaborative and open environment for Simulation-Based Design, enabling virtual prototypes to be improved in a continuous and collaborative manner while eliminating the need for physical prototypes during product development. The company employs over 700 high-level specialists worldwide covering more than 30 countries. ESI Group is listed in compartment C of NYSE Euronext Paris. For further information, visit www.esi-group.com.

Listed in Eurolist compartment C of NYSE Euronext Paris ISIN FR 0004110310 - FTSE 977- Bloomberg ESI FP - Reuters ESIG.LN

ESI GROUP has been qualified as "an innovative company" since January 20th 2000 by the OSEO and is eligible for inclusion in "FCPI" (venture capital trusts dedicated to innovation).

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